LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 42
Chapter 42. The Worst Development
In the Demon Lord’s Castle, in the territory of the Night Elves—at the very depths of the underground prison, there stood two Night Elves, fidgeting restlessly.
One of them, a man with a nervous expression biting his fingernails, was none other than the Prison Interrogation Chief, Sidarl T. Vasani-tsu.
At the age of 130, Sidarl could be considered middle-aged among Night Elves, who generally live about 250 years.
Renowned for his cunning and cleverness, he had steadily solidified his position without making any notable blunders in the Night Elf clan, where people are evaluated under a harsh point deduction system.
However, today may mark the end of his career—all thanks to the Demon Lord’s Prince, who was holed up in the “VIP Room,” having some fun with the High Elf Saint.
Demon Lord’s Prince No. 7, Zilbagias.
Of all things, he was feeling lustful towards a High Elf of all people.
(That brat, only five years old, is getting all lewd…!)
Glaring at the iron door ahead, Sidarl cursed under his breath.
(Hurry up and come out! He can’t possibly last long, being a virgin and all!)
After thinking that, he couldn’t help but imagine the scene inside, which made him feel nauseous.
For Night Elves, Forest Elves are loathsome, akin to slugs. Enjoying torture while watching them suffer was not much different from laughing at slugs squirming when salt is sprinkled on them.
From racial, cultural, and religious perspectives, Forest Elves are nothing but pests. Thus, they are completely off-limits in a sexual sense—though maybe some perverted individuals in the clan might exist, at least no one would ever come out about it—never did he expect the Prince would blurt out that he wanted to do it with the High Elf Saint.
Should have at least covered her with a scrap of cloth to hide her nakedness? No, no.
(But she’s five years old! That’s a bit too much!!!)
Though the Demon Race matures early, there are still limits. It’s like showing off a prized pet tiger to a royal child and being told to have it mate because of its beautiful fur. It’s simply an absurd notion.
Moreover, as a prince who inherits the blood of the Reiju Tribe, which handles healing curses in the Demon Kingdom, it’s troublesome as he cannot be treated lightly. If he were to blow up in anger after being rudely refused, who knows what terrible consequences would follow?
But above all, what terrified him most was—
(If, by any chance, Saint Liliana were to injure the prince…!)
Just thinking of what calamities could befall them made him feel faint.
Even Sidarl, who had faced countless life-threatening situations with keen crisis awareness and foresight, was in a situation that made him want to throw in the towel.
First of all, there’s no doubt the Demon Race would make complaints. If the prince were to be seriously injured or die, the prince’s mother would be furious.
What chaos would ensue? Demands for further troop contributions—budget cuts for the Night Elf clan—reducing the treatment slots for the Teleportation Spell—all these disasters might arise from this “blunder,” which could lead to Sidarl’s dismissal and a grisly end.
(All of this is…!!)
It’s all your fault, he half-vented his frustration on his niece beside him.
Viene T. Vasani-tsu—a maid serving the Duchess Platiphia. She pretended not to notice Sidarl’s glare, closing her eyes as if in prayer, focusing all her senses on her ears.
It was to rush in to help at the first sign of any trouble in the “VIP Room.”
Not only a servant but also trained as an excellent mercenary, she was one of the finest from the Night Elf clan, capable of handling simple magic as well. However, even Viene wouldn’t last a few seconds against a seriously harmful Saint; whether she could save the Prince was still a matter of doubt…
Even so, Viene would do her best to get a handle on things.
This time, it was Viene who brought the information that Zilbagias wanted to see the Saint.
(Of course, it was I who permitted it…!)
Sidarl couldn’t help but feel anger, mixed with his awareness of his own venting.
According to Viene, Zilbagias was quite fond of the High Elf skin. Tied to the Reiju Tribe, the prince’s strong connections led Sidarl to think he could invite him to the prison, further offer High Elf skin products, and butter him up to potentially strengthen future ties.
The Night Elf clan made significant contributions to the Demon Kingdom. Whether it be battlefield efforts, intelligence, or the daily chores that the Demon Race was not good at, they were everywhere.
Yet, in the Demon Kingdom, Night Elves are first-class citizens but are still distinctly inferior to the Demon Race. The various secret techniques monopolized by the Demon Race, such as the magic of demons and the healing of the Reiju Tribe, have limitations, with only a few being able to benefit from them.
In particular, the healing slots of the Reiju tribe were a serious issue. How many warriors had passed away, overtaken by delays while waiting for treatment, lamenting their fate?
Sidarl’s plan was to leverage Zilbagias to engage with the Reiju Tribe in hopes of expanding the treatment slots…
(Please…!)
Hurry up and come out! Sidarl prayed to the dark gods while cursing the light gods, glaring at the door ahead.
Even Sidarl was a top-tier warrior and had been straining his ears for a while, but he heard hardly any relevant sounds. Yet there seemed to be no sign of harm befalling the prince. What on earth were they doing…?
And then—
Clang! The chains emitted a loud rattling sound.
Sidarl reached for his inner jacket pocket, and Viene opened her eyes wide, quickly crouching down.
They exchanged glances. …Should they open the door right away?
How about now? When Sidarl mouthed the question, he couldn’t pick up any unusual noises, and Viene responded with just her lips.
No— faintly, he could hear the Prince’s voice. Was he speaking to the Saint? What was he saying? He thought he caught the word “dog.”
“—Ah!”
Viene suddenly flinched. Sidarl was overwhelmed with a prickling sensation.
This is—magical energy activation!
Something powerful was being unleashed in the VIP Room!!!
“Not good!”
What did you expect? There was no time for politeness now. Sidarl instantly placed his hand on the door.
“Your Highness! Are you alright!?”
—But in the center of the VIP Room stood the Prince, casually standing with his pants still on. Wait, wasn’t he supposed to be having fun…?
“Hmph… To barge in without knocking, you have guts.”
Zilbagias slowly turned around. There was a slight sense of dissonance. …Since when did this boy wear such a defiant grin?
A metallic sound echoed in the room, clink clink.
Spotting something behind Zilbagias, Sidarl’s eyes went wide.
Liliana! The High Elf Saint! She was sprawled on the floor!
Her neck rope and even the chains on her hands and feet had been severed. And slowly, she began to rise from the ground—
“Impossible!”
Did she break free from her restraints!? Never did he think the prince could be this foolish! Cursing his misjudgment, Sidarl pulled out the folded metallic armor from inside his jacket.
With a whoosh, the armor unfolded, transforming into a small bow. He strung a poisoned arrow from his sleeve, ready to launch at any moment.
Following Sidarl into the room, Viene gasped, “What!?” her voice shaky, but as she understood the situation, she whipped up her maid’s skirt, extracting a throwing dart secured to her thigh. The tip was thick enough to be used as a knife in close combat.
“Viene! Take the Prince and get out of here!”
The Prince was in the line of fire, she couldn’t shoot the Saint. Rather than working to talk him out of the way, Sidarl decided it would be quicker to have him leave.
“There’s no need for that.”
However, as Viene tried to rush forward, the Prince held up his hand to stop her.
“This woman is under my [control].”
…What nonsensical thing is this? So the brat thinks he can subdue her just by having sex once? Sidarl’s evaluation of Zilbagias had already plummeted to the depths.
Time was of the essence. The longer they stood here, the more the Saint was trying to rise. He had to inflict serious pain to rebind her and knock her out. As Viene rushed forward, Sidarl dodged the Prince to fire his arrow.
Zilbagias clicked his tongue.
“You’re all so clueless. Just watch.”
In an utterly outrageous move, he pulled the Saint up by her arm.
“Wha—”
Just as Sidarl was about to release his arrow, he ended up engrossed in confusion when he saw the Saint’s face.
She looked bewildered.
The Saint, sitting on the floor with a blank expression, looked up at Zilbagias with a curious “?”
“Good, good. That’s a good girl. I am your master, understand?”
Crouching down, Zilbagias wrapped his hands around the Saint’s face and began to squish her cheeks with a grin.
“? Woof woof!”
For a moment, she tilted her head but cheerfully answered as her face was being squished.
“—Huh?”
Both Sidarl and Viene froze. Even the sufficiently bright minds of the two couldn’t comprehend what was happening.
“…Your Highness?”
“I told you, I [controlled] her. As you can see, she’s nothing but a female dog now.”
The Saint, delighted by Zilbagias’ petting, was beaming as if she knew nothing of pain or fear.
—No, this might even be a disguise.
“[Bite your tongue and drown in your blood.]”
He hurled a curse imbued with magic at the Saint. It was a spell he’d planted just in case of emergencies.
“? Grrr…”
However, the Saint merely showed signs of fear from Sidarl’s intensified tone, with no effect whatsoever. Instead, she nervously began to hide behind Zilbagias.
Her behavior… looked for all the world as if she really had become… a dog…
“Still in doubt? We destroyed her ego with magic and made her think she’s a dog.”
“No… but…”
“You’re quite a stubborn one. Fine, I’ll show you definitive proof. I’m the Prince, and to have me go this far, you should be grateful, right?”
With a sinister grin, Zilbagias unsheathed an obsidian knife from his belt.
Then, without warning, he slashed his own arm.
“Ouch, that hurts…”
Zilbagias feigned a grimace, while the Saint uttered a pathetic “yip” and snuggled closer to him.
“Liliana, are you worried about me? You’re such a kind girl… How about taking care of me…?”
And the offered arm was licked tenderly by Liliana.
With a faint fizzing sound—
the wound was healing rapidly with an ethereal glow.
“What…!?”
Sidarl felt a shock as if his head had been cleaved by an axe.
Next to him, Viene also stood aghast, nearly dropping her throwing dart.
“So, that’s how it is. Alright, good girl.”
Zilbagias ruffled Liliana’s hair and kissed her forehead. Sidarl was struggling to contain his confusion and nausea.
“Actually, I’ve been busy getting close with her and having fun. I haven’t even gotten to the main thing yet. Like this, I can’t settle down; I plan to enjoy it properly when we get back to the room.”
…What in the world.
What on earth is the Prince saying?
“I like this girl.”
With an utterly arrogant expression, Zilbagias declared.
“Therefore, I’ll take her as my pet. I’ll take her home like this, no objections, right?”
—Of course I have objections!!
Sidarl mustered every ounce of willpower to glare at the Prince standing before him.